Revised August 2, 2021 Reviewed for currency January 14, 2021 The term dysentery was used by Hippocrates to indicate a condition characterized by the frequent passage of stool containing blood and mucus, accompanied by straining and painful defecation. It was…
Salmonellae are named for the pathologist Salmon, who was involved in the first isolation (by Theobald Smith) of Salmonella choleraesuis from the porcine intestine. Salmonella are effective commensals and pathogens that cause a spectrum of diseases in humans and animals,…
Acinetobacter, an aerobic, catalase-positive, oxidase-negative, gram-negative coccobacillus, was first described in 1911, but the initial description of the taxonomy of this diverse species was not published until 1986. Ubiquitous in nature, the 54 species of the genus Acinetobacter are associated…
Revised August 10, 2021 The genus Burkholderia is currently composed of many species, but only three are notable pathogens for humans or animals: the former B. cepacia complex (described in Chapter 220 ), B. pseudomallei (the agent of melioidosis), and…
Revised April 26, 2022 Stenotrophomonas maltophilia and the Burkholderia cepacia complex (BCC) cause infections in a variety of vulnerable patient populations including hospitalized patients such as patients with cancer and patients with specific genetic diseases such as cystic fibrosis (CF)…
Revised November, 2019 Pseudomonas species are ubiquitous gram-negative bacteria capable of inhabiting a wide variety of diverse environments, including soil, water, plants, insects, and animals. Among all Pseudomonas species, P. aeruginosa is the most important species affecting humans and is…
Reviewed for currency November 8, 2020 The family Enterobacteriaceae belongs to the domain Bacteria, phylum Proteobacteria, class Gammaproteobacteria, and order Enterobacteriales ( ). The Enterobacteriaceae are gram-negative, non–spore-forming, facultative anaerobes that are typically motile by means of peritrichous flagella,…
Reviewed for currency January 14, 2021 Reviewed for currency January 14, 2021 Helicobacter pylori (formerly known as Campylobacter pylori or pyloridis ) was first isolated from humans in 1982. This highly motile, curved, gram-negative rod lives within the mucus layer…
Revised July 1, 2020 Campylobacteriosis refers to the group of infections caused by gram-negative bacteria of the genus Campylobacter. Among the most common bacterial infections of humans in all areas of the world, Campylobacter spp. cause both diarrheal and systemic…
Vibrio species are ubiquitous in estuarine waters in the temperate zones. Plankton blooms and temperature upshifting in the spring are followed by rapid outgrowth of most vibrios. Molluscan shellfish, which are filter feeders, acquire vibrios as part of their normal…